Bright Desert Sun
Sep, 2015Views
10229
Likes
Awards
Contest Finalist in Capture Mother Nature Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in The Sunlight Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Desert Vistas Photo Contest
Contest Finalist in Lens Flares Photo Contest
Peer Award
Superb Composition
Absolute Masterpiece
Top Choice
Outstanding Creativity
All Star
Magnificent Capture
Superior Skill
Virtuoso
Genius
Emotions
Impressed
Happy
Top Ranks
Top 20 rank
Top 30 rankTop 20 rank week 1
Top 30 rankTop 10 rank week 1
Categories
Same photographer See allBehind The Lens
Discover more photos See all
Behind The Lens
Location
This photo was taken at the famous "wave formation" in the Vermillion cliffs wilderness on the border of Utah and Arizona. It's a very popular location for photos, but only 20 people/day are allowed and you have to be lucky to win a "lottery." My uncle won for 6 people on a very hot July summer day, during a month where several people lost their lives hiking to this spot. It was grueling carrying a ton of equipment, but so very worth it!Time
We started the hike around 6 am and arrived mid-morning. I couldn't believe how beautiful everything was! And hot! But the sun was in a great spot!Lighting
I was going for the "starburst" effect, and to do so I used a very wide angle lens and a very narrow aperture!Equipment
Canon 5Diii, rented wide angle lens (so sad I can't remember which one) - no flash or tripod.Inspiration
I wanted to capture something unique from this well photographed place. I have seen some amazing photos taken here. The bummer was that my camera batter totally died before I was able to take the more traditional shots you see of the Wave. I took SO many photos on the way there! But I was pretty happy with what I came away with.Editing
Not a lot of post processing...the most work was cleaning up some of the messy lens flare going on....but that was just a teeny bit on this photo. And then applying my standard exposure and white balance processing.In my camera bag
Too much equipment! I have my Canon 5Diii and usually a back up camera as well such as a Canon 7D or 70D. My staple lenses are my 50 L 1.2, 24-70 2.8, 70-200 2.8 and 16-35 L lenses. But I have a couple of fun lensbaby lenses as well, including the Velvet and an entire set of composer pro lenses! A mefoto tripod, a few canon flashes and some extra batteries are always hanging around as well.Feedback
If you want to shoot at the Wave, don't give up! Keep trying for the lottery, eventually you'll get in. I highly recommend going some other time than the middle of summer, but if you do go when it's super hot, make sure you leave early and drink plenty of water. And don't make my mistake (I ran out of battery shortly after I arrived) and take plenty of extra batteries! Think outside of the box an don't always go for the obvious shot! And most of all, have fun and enjoy the beautiful world we live in!
